Ang Lee understood that waiting was useless. The environment in the cave was very comfortable, and as the main leader, Ang Lee did not leave, so the subordinates naturally would not leave first. Moreover, many people really liked the cool environment in the cave. It was a good day to celebrate, so it was not a big deal to stay a little longer. They would just treat it as accompanying their leader.
Although this interfered with Ang Lee's plan to rest, these guys did not do it on purpose. Moreover, there were some officials who were not in good health and wanted to go back to sleep early. They were also wronged.
After walking into the cave, looking at the enthusiastic smiling faces, Ang Lee said, "Everyone, it's already very late. Let's go back to the port to rest! Go and rest! Guards, lead the way. "
After saying that, he ordered the guards to lead twenty soldiers to escort the older officials out of the cave and back to the residential area on the flat land of the port.
"Those fellows have finally left. Men, hurry up and bring the bed in."
Ang Lee sighed and ordered his subordinates to move the combined beds and blankets and other items from outside the cave into the cave.
After the soldiers moved the combined beds into a small room in the cave and finished assembling them, Ang Lee ordered all the guards to leave the cave. For the whole night, only Ang Lee and Xia Xiaoluo could be in the cave. The guards took turns to be on duty and there was a special tent outside for them to rest.
"Assistant Minister Li, I'm going to make the bed."
Li Xiaolu smiled and ran into the small room to make the bed.
They chose to rest in the cave because the temperature here was enough to make people feel comfortable. It was summer and it was so hot outside that it made people sweat. Even though it was late, the weather was still quite hot. However, even if there were many ice cubes in the room, it was still difficult to make people feel comfortable. It was far from being as cool as the cave.
In a bad environment where one was sweating all over, one would feel uncomfortable sleeping alone, not to mention two people sleeping together. If they wanted to do something, it would be even more uncomfortable.
If you always hold it in, it will definitely not be good for your body. If you have desire, you have to vent it. This is the best way to maintain good health. Ang Lee is naturally a fellow Taoist who is well-versed in the way of maintaining good health.
Due to the hot weather, after the completion of the Silk Road, there were many things that Ang Lee had to deal with personally. For example, how great the contributions of his subordinates were, what contributions they had made, and which subordinates would be stationed at the main territories along the way. These were all matters that had to be seriously considered. Thus, he naturally neglected the needs of his body. At this time, everything was done, and even the celebratory banquet was over. Thus, there was nothing for Ang Lee to worry about. If he did not take advantage of this opportunity to enjoy himself, he would truly be letting himself down.
The beauty was making the bed inside, while Ang Lee was strolling back and forth in the cave. He had eaten a little too much just now, so he should exercise more to aid digestion so that it would not affect the good thing later.
There were some traces of man-made carvings on the walls of the cave. Although there were not many, it could be seen that many of the traces were from a certain era. This was enough to show that someone had discovered this beautiful cave a long time ago. Perhaps someone had even lived in it before.
These patterns looked very much like primitive characters, but it was possible that they were casually drawn by children. In short, people had indeed come to this cave before, and Li Xiaolu was one of them.
"Assistant Minister Li, the bed is ready. Let's …"
Li Xiaolu smiled and hugged Ang Lee tightly from behind. She had not been pampered by Ang Lee for many days, and it seemed that her entire body was not very comfortable. That gentleness was really irresistible.
When a person went out alone, the most unbearable thing was the unbearable loneliness. Ordinary people could not bear it, but they could only hold it in. As for those with ability and status, they did not have to suffer so much. Therefore, since ancient times, many people with ability had a large group of girls by their side. They could do whatever they wanted without any psychological burden.
The temperature in the cave was slightly low, so even if it was very intense exercise, it would not make people feel too hot. After tossing and turning for more than two hours, Ang Lee was lying on the bed, exhausted. He closed his eyes and rested very contentedly, while Li Xiaolu was panting non-stop. She tightly hugged Ang Lee, her two jade legs tightly clamped Ang Lee. Moreover, she was constantly squirming, which made Ang Lee very comfortable.
Ang Lee rested for a moment and reached out to gently rub Li Xiaolu's tender parts. He asked, "Little baby, if I can't pamper you often in the future, will you be very sad?"
This was not a casual remark, but an inevitable reality. After all, at this moment, Ang Lee only had Li Xiaolu by his side. After returning to Egypt, one woman would become five. Yun 'er, Beauty, White Fox, and Magpie were all beautiful little beauties. Any one of them could make Ang Lee very excited. Ang Lee's body was not made of iron. It was very unrealistic for five people to pamper him at the same time. Therefore, it was inevitable that they would take turns to neglect him. After returning to Chang' an City, the situation was even more serious. There were many madams and maids at home, and there were also many beauties who kept their chastity for Ang Lee in various places. He could not let them down. In this way, the favor that Li Xiaolu could receive was too little. It might not even reach one-tenth of what she received now.
"Didn't I say last time that as long as I can see Assistant Minister Li every day, I will be very happy. It is precisely because I can't receive love often in the future that I have to make the most of it now."
Li Xiaolu said very boldly.
Ang Lee smiled and said, "No wonder you are so clingy these days. It turns out that you know that your chances in the future are getting fewer and fewer. You want to take advantage of this good opportunity to enjoy more."
"Yes, yes, yes. It will be half a month. Assistant Minister Li will accompany me every day. Is that okay?"
Li Xiaolu took advantage of Ang Lee's comfort to ask for love.
Ang Lee said very happily, "Good, very good. I will pamper you every day. Aren't you afraid of drowning? Hahaha!"
After a night of celebration, Ang Lee was not in a hurry to leave Gibraltar. He still needed to rest for two days before leaving the westernmost territory of the Tang Dynasty. In addition to rest, Ang Lee also needed to personally oversee the construction of the port's defense.
After all, this location was too important. It was simply the westernmost bridgehead of the Tang Empire. It was a place that could not be lost. If the defense was done well, it could guarantee that it would never be breached. It could also greatly reduce the casualties of the defenders. In short, it was very important.
Most people would think that only the weak would desperately build defensive facilities, and the strong would be more willing to take the initiative to attack. In fact, this was a very wrong idea. Sometimes, the situation was the opposite. The strong preferred strong defensive facilities, and the weak were unwilling to build any defense.
For example, during the difficult period of the Anti-Japanese War, the Japanese occupied a great advantage in Hua Xia. They belonged to the stronger side, but they built too many defensive buildings in the rear. All kinds of turrets were spread all over Hua Xia.
The soldiers and civilians of Hua Xia, who were in an absolutely weak position, rarely built strong cities. This was because after the powerful Japanese built turrets for defense, they could basically stay inside without any worries. The armed forces of Hua Xia could not break through these strong defensive turrets at all. Therefore, they liked to build these defensive buildings very much when they were not strong enough.
However, the soldiers and civilians of Hua Xia were different. Even if they built strong defensive fortresses, it was meaningless because the Japanese had a large number of cannons. They were fully capable of destroying the fortresses. If the soldiers hid inside, they would have no way to survive. They would simply be the enemy's live target.
It was precisely because the Japanese, who were the stronger side, had cannons for attack and were not afraid of cannons for defense that they could run rampant in Hua Xia. The soldiers and civilians of Hua Xia who resisted did not have cannons for attack. When they attacked, they could not destroy the turrets. When they defended, the fortresses were also live targets. Therefore, there was naturally no need to spend a lot of manpower and material resources to build defensive buildings. Building more guns and explosives was the key to victory for the soldiers and civilians of Hua Xia.
At this time, the Tang Dynasty had a strong offensive ability, and all the possible opponents they had to face did not have equipment powerful enough to destroy concrete. Therefore, it was very necessary for the Tang Dynasty to build defensive facilities in the places where they were stationed. They could use the smallest number of troops to defend the most important positions.
Of course, Ang Lee would not only leave the defensive troops behind, but also many officials and talents from all walks of life to manage the port. If such a good port was only used to deter the surrounding countries, it would become a burden for the Tang Empire. After all, no matter how small the army was, it would still consume the state's finances. If they spent money to defend this place but could not get enough benefits from it, it would be pure expenditure with no income. Then, the meaning of their existence would be reduced.
The reason why many dynasties in Hua Xia gave up remote areas was that the existence of certain areas was a great burden to the central finance. This was because many remote areas were relatively tough and their productivity was relatively low, so they could pay very little taxes. If the taxes were increased at will, it would arouse a revolt, and the imperial court would have to mobilize troops to quell the rebellion. The losses would be even greater. There were too many places that the imperial court needed to spend money on. If there was a disaster year when the imperial court could not make ends meet, they would consider giving up the land with low income but high expenditure, or withdraw all the officials and troops there and let the local tyrants manage it themselves. They would only obey the imperial court nominally. In this way, the burden on the imperial court could be greatly reduced.
In other words, the physical boundaries of a dynasty depended on the financial balance of the dynasty. Generally, in the core area of the empire, the income was inevitably greater than the expenditure. In the border areas and other areas far away from the core of the empire, the income was far from enough to make up for the expenditure. However, as long as the imperial court could hold on, it generally would not choose to give up. However, if the imperial court's finances were gradually strained, there was really no other way. They could only choose to give up some of the land that was too costly.
For example, the current imperial court of the Tang Empire was quite strained financially before Ang Lee promoted industrialization. The several surrendered cities in the north, as well as Anxi and Norland, were all serious burdens for the imperial court of the Tang Empire.
After all, these places were all desolate and uninhabited areas. The financial resources that they could provide for the imperial court were extremely limited. At the same time, these places were far away from the core area of the Tang Empire's borders and could be attacked by hostile countries at any time. In order to maintain these areas, it was necessary to deploy a large number of troops in these places. It was even necessary to fight a few wars from time to time. Everyone knew how much the military expenditure was. As for the expenditure of war, it was even more astronomical.
Even the enormous Tang Empire could not withstand the expenditure of long-term war. Therefore, there were many times when it had to show more goodwill to the surrounding areas. It even gave the surrounding areas generous rewards that were even more generous than the tribute from the surrounding areas.
Due to the inconvenience of transportation, in the past, every soldier that the Tang Empire deployed to Anxi cost the imperial court as much as ten soldiers. Now, Anxi had more than twenty thousand soldiers, so it cost the imperial court as much as two hundred thousand soldiers in the interior. From this, one could see how large the expenditure was.
If the imperial court's finances could not support it in the end, it was inevitable that they would give up on Anxi. Of course, because Ang Lee had obtained the railroad, the cost of raising soldiers in Anxi was greatly reduced. Raising more soldiers would reduce the expenditure of the imperial court. Moreover, relying on the railroad would greatly increase Anxi's development. In the future, Anxi's local tax revenue would also greatly increase, reducing the expenditure of the imperial court and even generating a surplus.
Of course, according to history, when the An Lushan Rebellion broke out, the Anxi army completely abandoned the Four Garrisons of Anxi, even though the interior had participated in quelling the rebellion.
Some people might think that the reason the Anxi army left the Four Garrisons of Anxi and entered the interior to quell the rebellion was because the rebel army in the northeast was too powerful. Moreover, the Anxi army was also a border army and was also very powerful. Sending powerful soldiers into the interior to quell the rebellion was greatly beneficial to the cause.
Of course, this was the correct judgment. However, at the same time, many people overlooked one point: as the war against the rebellion developed, the imperial court's finances would be greatly depleted. Moreover, many areas that were rich were occupied by the rebel army. Thus, the pressure on the imperial court's finances would be even greater. Under these circumstances, the imperial court truly did not have the financial resources to manage the Four Garrisons of Anxi. Giving them up was a last resort.
After the powerful Anxi army returned to the interior, although their numbers were still the same, because it was much easier to resupply, the expenditure on the imperial court's finances would be greatly reduced.
In addition, if the Anxi army did not give up on the Four Garrisons of Anxi, not only would the huge expenditure on the imperial court's finances be unable to be relieved, once the powerful enemies of Tibet learned of the Tang Empire's internal rebellion, they would definitely take the opportunity to attack Anxi. In this way, the Anxi army would place even greater pressure on the imperial court's finances, and the imperial court of the Tang Empire would definitely not be able to bear such a burden.
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